Have you ever been in what you thought was an impossible situation, yet you knew it was what the Lord wanted you to do? This is when we are to remember that “with God nothing shall be impossible”. (Luke 1:37)

I have a lot of weak spots in my life, but the one thing that motivates me is that I believe, with all my heart, that nothing is impossible, because God can do anything! On November the 30th, Jerry and I celebrated our 50th anniversary of our first date. Jerry picked me up in his parent’s blue 1953 Chevy pick up truck. He was a real gentleman and he opened my door for me. As I was getting in the truck he said, “You will have to wait to get out until I open the door for you, because the door handle is broken and you can’t open the door from the inside”. What he didn’t know about me was you don’t tell me it can’t be done. You can tell me not to do something, but don’t tell me it can’t be done. When we got to where we were going, he came around to open my door and I had it opened and said, “You can open this from the inside.” Years later he laughingly said, “I should have taken you home right then!” When someone says can’t, it is like there is a motor turned on in me and I must find a way to do it. Now I can’t say that this hasn’t gotten me into a lot of trouble through the years, but it has also helped me to accomplish some things for the Lord from time to time.

I want us to think about Mary and how she must have felt when the angel told her what the Lord was going to do through her life. Her first comment was, “How can this be, seeing I know not a man”? I can’t imagine how Mary must have felt having been chosen for this mission, the work that man had waited for ever since Adam and Eve sinned in the garden (Gen 2:16). Look closely at Mary’s comment.

“How can this be, seeing I know not a man”? She was right about one thing. She couldn’t do what the angel said would happen. God didn’t need Mary to do this work. God was going to do this work and He only needed Mary to be His handmaiden. This is where we go wrong so often. We know what the Lord wants to do through us, but we think we have to accomplish it by ourselves. If we do an impossible work of righteousness, it is because we were “used of God,” because in us is no righteousness! To understand that God never asked us to be God, He only ask us to let Him be God through us.

I have not given alot of time and thought to Mary’s life because of how the world tries to worship her and make her a god. Because of that, I have missed some wonderful things about Mary.

To a virgin espoused to a man whose name was Joseph, of the house of David; and the virgin’s name was Mary .

And the angel came in unto her, and said, Hail, thou that art highly favoured, the Lord is with thee: blessed art thou among women.

Luke 1:27-28

If the Lord sent an angel to you today to tell you what He thought about you, what would he have to say? Look what the angel said about Mary. She was highly favoured! You and I should be seeking to find favour in the eyes of the Lord each day. This means that Mary’s life was pleasing to the Lord. She was living to please God. Next, the angel said, “The Lord is with thee.” What more could we ask for in life than to know that the Lord is with us? Then the angel announces that Mary is blessed among women. He did not say above women, but among women. The world holds Mary above other women and idolizes her name. God didn’t take Mary and make her different than others. She was one of us with a wonderful blessing upon her. She is here to remind us that God can use us if we find favour in His eyes and if He is pleased with us. Only one woman could birth the Lord Jesus Christ, but all women can be used of God to fulfill His will, and we should be ready should He ask us to do His work. What would the Lord have to say about us today, should He need to use us for His work?

Mary was of the line of David and was espoused to Joseph, who also was of the line of David. They had all the credentials to do this work and yet God didn’t need Joseph’s seed or Mary’s work, He only needed them to be available for Him to do His work. Even if we have all the education or degrees for service, only God can produce miracles, the impossible works.

Mary was troubled (Lk.1:29) because she thought she was responsible to perform these words and she couldn’t see how that could be done in a godly way. She was fearful (Lk.1:30) because of the magnitude of the work that would be done. Mary was believing (Lk.1:45) before she had proof of what the angel said. She went to Elizabeth and told the news for a truth. Mary believed God!

Mary magnified the Lord (Lk.1:45) with her soul. Mary did not lift up herself because she was being used of God; she lifted up the Lord because she knew this was of Himself and not herself! God knew He could trust Mary not to let this work cause pride to rise up and destroy her. The Lord lifted up Mary many times, but you never see Mary lifting herself up!

Mary had a rejoicing spirit from the beginning! Who wants to be around an old sour puss? Her spirit sustained her through very difficult times. There was no way for her to prove that she had not been with a man. Everyone either looked at her with wonder or with disgust. On top of that, she had to mother a perfect child. We think it is hard to rear little sinners, but what if they were perfect and we were the only ones to do wrong. Jesus was her first child and she had to learn all she knew about motherhood from taking care of this perfect child. Mary had to rear this perfect child while she reared other imperfect children and still made them all feel like one. It took great wisdom to do the work that Mary was called to do and she had to be in touch with the Lord daily to accomplish this work.

When Jesus started His ministry, He pulled away from His family upbringing. Mary and her children waited outside and was asking to see Jesus. They told Jesus that His mother wanted to see Him. Jesus said, “Who is my mother?” Then He said that we who believe and follow Him are His mothers, sisters and brothers. In ministry Jesus does not respect persons. I don’t think this bothered Mary, because she knew from the first that Jesus was God and that He did not need her, but she needed Him. After all the work that Mary invested in Jesus’ life, it did not earn her eternal life. Mary received eternal life just like you and I received eternal life. But Jesus was very grateful for Mary and the work she did for His life. He saw to it that she was taken care of when He was on the cross.

I have spent years studying the women of the Bible. I have probably spent less time looking at Mary’s life than any other woman in the Bible. I think that was because the world worships her and I didn’t want anyone to think that I looked to Mary and not Jesus. Actually she is one of the best examples we as wom
en have to look to.

Mary’s words to the angel were, “Behold the handmaid of the Lord; be it unto me according to thy word.” Should the Lord want to use my life today, to do His will and His work on earth, I want to be like Mary and say, “Be it unto me according to thy Word.” Our prayer should be, “Lord use me for your glory.”

While we cannot give birth to the Son of God like Mary did, we can produce children who submit to God and let the Son of God work through their lives. The Lord Jesus Christ is being birthed in every believer’s life.

Here is what Mary thought of the Lord after the angel spoke to her.

And Mary said, My soul doth magnify the Lord,

And my spirit hath rejoiced in God my Saviour.

For he hath regarded the low estate of his handmaiden: for, behold, from henceforth all generations shall call me blessed.

For he that is mighty hath done to me great things; and holy is his name.

And his mercy is on them that fear him from generation to generation.

He hath shewed strength with his arm; he hath scattered the proud in the imagination of their hearts.

He hath put down the mighty from their seats, and exalted them of low degree.

He hath filled the hungry with good things; and the rich he hath sent empty away.

He hath holpen his servant Israel, in remembrance of his mercy;

As he spake to our fathers, to Abraham, and to his seed for ever.

Luke 1:46-55

Read Luke chapter one and see what Mary’s prayer was when she was with Elizabeth.

Have a Merry, Merry Christmas and may the Lord Bless Your Life with His presence.